


when the rain comes

by penguinsledding



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: F/M, also known as the Refugees AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-01-23
Updated: 2013-03-06
Packaged: 2017-11-26 16:11:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,069
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/652088
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/penguinsledding/pseuds/penguinsledding
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>AU. Katara and Aang are refugees from the Southern Water Tribe and the Southern Air Temple respectively. They meet on their way to Ba Sing Se and decide to try to make a life in the city together. Unfortunately, the corruption within the city prevents it from being the safe place they were promised.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> For all those following my Tumblr (penguinsledding.tumblr.com), you know that this AU is something I've been playing with for a long time. I finally decided to attempt to write it, and to publish my attempts. It's been a while since I've written prose (and even longer since I tried to write angst) so please give me a while to get back into the swing of things. 
> 
> If I do manage to finish this, it'll be the longest fic I've ever completed. The goal at the moment is to post a new chapter every Wednesday. Any encouragement that you're willing to give will go a long way in my attempts!
> 
> The title is from "After the Storm" by Mumford & Sons, which is a great song for this fic and a great song for Kataang in general. (And just a great song).

The clouds were sulfurous.

Thick, dark flakes rained down from them. The ashen snow coated the sky, wafting down with a gentle sort of rhythm. Katara reached out to let one of them fall on her hand. When it landed, it melted, and the deep grey permeated her glove. She frowned at the spreading stain.

Katara had grown up in a village ravaged by war. She knew the look of this--the black ash spreading across her home. She knew what it meant, too. It was as familiar as the nursery rhymes her mother rocked her to sleep with.

A few times every year, its downy grey flakes would form a blanket of sorts, coating their tribe. It was always accompanied by ships. Those ships were always bigger than those of the small tribe; they were intimidating steel traps, larger than their whole village. However, after a few days of fighting, they always left. The South Pole was not their natural habitat, and they couldn’t stand to be in the cold for too long.

They always made sure to take a bender with them as a souvenir.

For weeks afterwards, the rest of the waterbenders would work tirelessly, of their own free will, to eradicate the snow. No one could stand its presence for any longer than absolutely necessary. It was a dark menace, a shadow on the tribe. It spread across igloos and left children coughing at the smell. 

Now, years after the last raid, it had come back. 

This time, however, Katara wasn’t running to hide in the igloo with mom. She was ready to fight, no matter what anyone said. She ran towards the docks.

The snow fell as she ran. Everywhere she looked was a grey wasteland. The ashes formed a thin coating that masking the glimmer of the too white snow. 

Her ears roared, and her blood pumped. She shoved everything away from her mind, pushing herself even as her breath started to come in pants. She forgot everything except for the rhythmic pat of her feet and the thick, dark snow.

“Katara!” 

As if in a dream, she stopped and turned to face the voice.

“Sokka?”

“What are you _doing_ here?” he said, checking over his shoulders for attackers. Katara set her face in a determined expression, prepared to fight.

Sokka had clearly been sneaking warrior paint away from the rest of the tribesmen. He had painted himself in a hurry; Katara could see thin lines of skin between his strokes. The black that lined his eyes was thin at best, and the coating of white was sparse. He made for a poor wolf; somehow the dark lines that looked so intimidating on her father looked silly on her brother. His helmet was too big for him; it sunk into his eyeline. As much as he liked to pretend otherwise, Sokka was a child too.

“I need to help,” Katara replied. She kept her head held high; Sokka wasn’t old enough to tell her what to do yet. Her tribe needed her, and she would be there for them, whether he liked it or not.

“No, you don’t. You need to _hide._ ”

“Why? You’re not!” Katara’s hands clenched into fists. She was bubbling with anger now. It was the fierce, unrestrained sort of rage, the kind that she reserved only for her brother.

“I’m a _warrior_ ,” Sokka insisted, “and practically an adult. You’re just a kid, and besides, you’re a girl. Go hide!”

“Ugh!” Katara shrieked. “I’m so tired of you! I’m practically a master waterbender, I’m perfectly capable of fighting, girl or not! In fact, I’m more useful than _you_! You’re just mad that I can ac-”

Sokka froze.

“Katara, shh!”

“Don’t tell me what to do! You’re barely older than me! You don’t even _shave_ yet, Sokka, you don’t g-”

A hand clasped over her mouth and nose. Katara yowled in protest. As she shrieked against the fabric of his glove, her brother pulled her to him and wretched them both behind a tent. 

“Oh god, Katara, shut _up_!” Sokka groaned, clasping his hand tighter around her face. She kicked him in the shins as hard as she could, continuing her screeching. He sucked in a breath, but he didn’t let go.

Her eyes were swimming with black spots now. His thick gloves completely covered her mouth and nose. Her energy was waning, and her scream faded away with no oxygen to sustain it. Sokka’s heavy pants seemed to be mocking her.

In the corner of her eye she saw a man in a strange red uniform walk just past their hiding spot.

Everything went black.

**xxx**

Something wafted across her skin.

The edges danced just above her, just close enough to tease her skin. The material tickled her chin. 

She had to sneeze.

And so she did, reaching up to cover her mouth with one gloved hand. She blinked the tiredness out of her eyes and shoved up at the fabric covering her. What was going on?

As her eyes focused, she found herself staring at the palm of her hand. The rays of light that managed to shine through her cover were dim, at best, but she could see the filmy green snot that had stretched across fabric of her glove. Beneath it, a blotch of grey was splayed across the formerly white fabric. 

In that moment, the events of the day came flooding back to her.

Sokka. The Fire Nation. The snow.

The world became a flurry of movement. 

She pushed at the fabric above her desperately, fighting to escape from the heavy material. A metal rod stabbed into her leg. She pulled harder against her makeshift prison.

Something gave. 

Katara took a deep, desperate breath of the freezing air and kicked at the remaining covering. It settled in a heap a few inches away from her feet. 

It became evident to her that the cloth covering her was the remnants of a tent. The rod that poked her must’ve been one of the supports. She reached down to touch her tender leg. Luckily, her thick pants had shielded her from most of the damage. The worst she expected from it was a purple bruise.

Sokka, on the other hand, should expect much worse.

This was just like him. Knocking her out just so she couldn’t fight! She’d bet anything that he was just afraid she’d do better than him. It would serve him right, all his stupid “warrior” friends knowing how much better his little sister was at fighting.

Yes, she’d give him a piece of her mind all right.

She stood up, groaning as black spots swam across her vision. She reached out for something to steady her. Her hand didn’t come into contact with anything.

She fought against her bleary vision and tried to focus on the land in front of her.

_Oh._

Every one of the tribe’s small tents had fallen. They lay half-buried in the shadowy snow drifts. Several small fires still burned, clinging to the fabric for kindling. The town’s large igloo had half-melted and frozen again, leaving a pathetic, misshapen mound of ice. 

A body lay only a few feet from where she’d been.

Her breath caught in her throat. It lay face down in the snow, its limbs splayed across the ground. One arm was bent at an unnatural angle, and large portions of its jacket had burnt away, revealing pink and blistered skin. He was a broken, charred remnant of what she once knew him to be.

Still, she’d recognize that stupid wolf-tail anywhere.

She was paralyzed; frozen. She wondered for a moment if she’d died too, froze to death in the snow under the tent. Wondered if maybe this was hell. If everyone was dead, and she was in hell.

A sob bubbled and burst, strange and foreign in this dead land. She cried until her eyes hurt, and her face ached. She fell to the ground, lamenting alongside the dead.

It was impossible. Impossible that he was gone- that they were all gone, and that she still lived.

And it was impossible that he had been right. Sokka, _of all people_ , was right. He knew that she needed to hide when even she didn’t. Only he’d been too focused on her; he should’ve realized that his needs were the same. He should’ve realized.

(It was only then that the tears came).

**xxx**

It was the hardest thing she’d ever done, but she stood up.

Every step after the first got harder - ridiculously, impossibly, _outlandishly_ hard. Still, she did it. She left her brother lying in the snow; left her cousin, her neighbor, and even her grandmother when she came to them. It seemed that she was forced to see everyone that she had loved in her short trek to the boats. 

The one thing that she didn’t see were survivors. Instead, everyone was burnt, broken, and gone.

Katara forced herself to remember that she was not and collected a canoe.

It was a shabby ride. The creaking wood planks weren’t meant for long journeys; it was a fishing vessel. She took it anyway. 

“I should say something,” Katara whispered, looking at her village from the beach. Her trembling voice echoed in the empty space, the last it would ever hear. From this moment on, it would be a land of the dead. “Something meaningful.”

In the end, she simply left.


	2. Chapter Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The story continues! And it does it on time too!! It's incredible!
> 
> Anyway, this chapter is on the same vein as the last one; we've just got to take some time to set up the plot before the story gets too terribly exciting and Kataangy. We switch to Aang's POV here in order to tell the Air Nomad's side of the story. 
> 
> I hadn't really gotten a hold of his voice (or Katara's for that matter...) when I wrote this chapter, but as I continue writing I get significantly better at writing them. Just hang in there... oh and enjoy!

Drops of water flicked his skin and made runny paths down his cheeks. He wondered if he should’ve expected more rain; the clouds were particularly large today.

The sun was blocked by one now; it seemed that he was destined for cloudy skies.

He didn’t let it hinder him. The young airbender was a serial optimist; for every warm day with the sun in his face he had a side-splitting, grin-inducing evening spent dancing through the puddles and mock-waterbending the falling water.

No, he’d never minded the rain.

Appa didn’t either. His fur, heavy with moisture, stuck to him in clumps. His massive tongue lolled from his mouth to catch the raindrops.

Aang’s glider caught the rain like an umbrella. The thick cloth was built to withstand far greater journeys than his little joyride around the temple. His master, Monk Gyatso, had given it to him when he first came to the temple. It had been his when he was a young bender. Back then they had spent hours flying together, just seeing where the wind took them.

Lately, however, Gyatso had been feeling too poorly for such extraneous exercise. Instead, he cracked jokes about his age and taught Aang, now an airbending master, the much more secret and sacred art of pie making. The young bender smiled at the thought.

He and his bison flew for a while longer, the sky filled with the _plop-plops_ of the rain and the occasional overjoyed whoop as Aang pulled off a particularly difficult move.

However, the light rain fast became a torrent, and the airbender quickly realized that they were farther from home than he thought. He decided to head back home. Appa was already soaring beneath him; he knew Aang and his limits too well. The sky bison was unsurprised when his boy dropped into his saddle.

“Thanks, buddy,” Aang murmured, reaching over the leather to run a hand through Appa’s fur. It was sopping wet. HIs hand left a trail, a long line of displaced fur on the otherwise well-groomed animal. Appa gave an appreciative grunt. 

As they flew back towards the Southern Air Temple, Aang became increasingly aware of the strangeness surrounding his home. He could see glints of red through the thick rain. They became clearer as they moved closer.

It wasn’t anything from the Air Nomads, that was for sure. The color was too rich, too dark. His people preferred light, gossamer hues. That way, their clothing reflected their element. 

The only nation that Aang knew of that wore reds that color was the Fire Nation.

“That’s weird,” he said. “I didn’t know we were expecting a visit.”

Appa hedged away from the massive balloons; his fur was standing on edge. Some of the machines were moored on the temple. More still floated through the air, surrounding the mountains.

Suddenly the bison roared and dove down, _down_ , _**down**_ through the rain and sleet. Aang yowled as fire whizzed past them.

“What was _that?”_ he shouted, looking behind them.

Appa continued twisting and spinning as his rider held on for dear life. They weaved through lines of fire and balloons, desperately trying to avoid the attacks.

Another burst of flame slammed into them. Aang ducked behind the saddle. Appa’s hair sizzled as it was singed; Aang’s shirt met the same fate. He yowled, beating at it. They began to fall.

“No!” Aang screamed, abandoning his sleeve to pull up on the reins. “Appa, no!” 

The balloons faded away. Tears ran down Aang’s cheeks. The wind buffeted his clothing, and he reached for his glider.

Suddenly, almost invisibly, Appa jerked up and to the right. They slammed into a cave, coming to a great, rumbling stop against the wall. As soon as they landed, Aang whizzed to his bison’s front. He clamped onto him, arms wrapping around as much of his head as possible. He buried his face into the wet, matted fur. “Don’t _do_ that.” 

The airbender pulled back to look at his friend. The bison’s eyes were tired, but alive.

Once he was reassured his bison was fine, he began to look around the cave. Appa had brought him to one of the back-up stables; it was only used when nomads from the other temples came to visit. Winding, maze-like tunnels led from it to the main temple, and every year at least one child got horribly lost in them. Gyatso liked to joke that they were built long ago as a punishment for the other temples. Aang secretly agreed; why else would they be so needlessly complicated?

It was unlikely that anyone could find them there; in fact, it was almost impossible. Even Aang, who’d lived in the temple for many years, wasn’t sure if he’d been in this particular room before. 

“We should go,” Aang murmured. “If the Fire Nation is attacking inside the temple too, they’ll need our help.”

Appa growled in protest.

“Hey, don’t worry bud. I’ll be fine. It’s probably just one big misunderstanding.”

As if to prove him wrong, a scream rang out through the air.

“Gyatso?” Aang shrieked. “We need to help him!” 

He ran for the door. Appa roared.

Aang ran towards the doorway and skid into the hall. A rush of flame came roaring towards him just as Appa’s teeth captured his shirt tail and pulled him back.

“Let me go!” Aang yelled, pushing at his friend. “I have to help!” 

A voice sounded from the hallway. “You guys move ahead! I think there’s another one!”

The world moved in slow motion. A man passed in front of the doorway; his red uniform was stained with dried, brown blood.

Aang reached for his glider. His scream rang in the air as he slammed the wood down. A colossal blast of air collided with the soldier, shoving him into the wall. A sickening crack echoed through the room.

Blood stained the stones behind him.

The child froze. 

His bison bit his collar. He felt himself being lifted, carried like a child away from the door. Aang was set down on the floor. Appa curled up in front of the cave opening, tugging the boy towards him. Catatonic, he let himself fall against the bison, curling his hand in the fur.

When he finally fell asleep, amid the screams and sobs of his dying people, it was the crack of the skull that haunted his dreams.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not entirely pleased with the ending of this chapter. I wanted to give Aang's thought an empty, catatonic feel, but I can't help but think that it took a lot of the power away from the moment. Ah well, what can you do?
> 
> Please leave kudos or a comment! I appreciate every one!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, please forgive the filler-ness of this chapter... I just need to get Katara and Aang in the same place at the same time! Hopefully you enjoy the brief break in character deaths anyway; trust me, we'll be back on track soon enough.

The water was a brilliant blue, blindingly bright. Her skin buzzed at its nearness; she was tethered to it, connected by an unbreakable thread. She could almost feel it rushing through her fingertips, could almost see the life roaring and rearing under the surface. The waves around her ebbed and flowed, waiting for their chance to overwhelm, to destroy.

She really shouldn’t have taken the canoe.

It wasn’t like she hadn’t known that it wouldn’t hold up well. The thing was shabby, after all. All of the villagers loved mocking their fishing boats, picking fun at their creaking planks and chipping paint.

Correction: had loved.

Katara shook her head and banished the memories from her mind. There was no time for hurt now. There was only the ocean, bubbling and bursting. Each crest of a wave brought her closer to safety.

The journey continued.

She had been speeding through the ocean at unheard of speeds when the first planks began to give in. She filled the holes with ice but stopped her bending.

She was exhausted, quite frankly. She’d been keeping up her speed all night, letting her mourning bubble into anger in order to better fuel her bending.

Katara sat for the first time in a long time, tucking her feet under her. A trembling, tired hand raised up as she pulled a long thread of water from the ocean.

The waterbender focused, centered herself, and pulled at the thread. Salt dripped onto the ground and left behind pure, clean water. Once she was finished she drank it greedily, wetting her throat for the first time in hours. For a moment, she pondered sleep.

On the horizon, a boat appeared.

Katara’s hopes soared for a moment before they were dashed by the red flag waving from the stern of the ship. Her breath caught in her throat.

Careful not to disturb her boat, she crawled over its edge. The water was cold, and any number of beasties could lurk beneath, but she wasn’t particularly worried. She thought she may welcome a scuffle with a serpent; it could be over then, one way or another.

The ship sailed closer, dangerously close. Before long, she could hear the voices of the men sailing it.

“Hey, what’s that?” a man called. She could see his chin from where she hid; he was peering over the edge of the ship. Fortunately she was hidden well enough behind the rim to avoid his gaze.

“Oh, it’s just an old Water Tribe boat,” a woman laughed. “We hit them too. It must’ve drifted from their shitty village.”

“I’m surprised it made it this far!” chuckled a third. “The Water Tribe’s known for their shoddy craftsmanship. I bought a tent from one of their traders once; the rods were so brittle they’d snapped by the time I got home from the market!”

“You think their bones’d break so easily?” the first man laughed. Katara could no longer see him; he must’ve given up his investigation.

“Ask the Southern Raiders,” the woman jeered, “That is, if they didn’t just burst in and set the town on fire before they got to have any fun with them... again.”

The crew booed.

“Ugh, the Southern Raiders! There’s no art there. Y’know they used to try to bring waterbenders in _alive?_ If I’d gotten the chance to capture one of those rats, I’d have done a hell of a lot more than throw them in prison, I can promise you that!”

Katara’s blood boiled and her stomach churned. The air was red-tinted.

She twisted in her spot the best that she could, sliding her arms into the familiar position. She pushed up, letting the water carry her; the great wave roared onto the deck of the ship.

“Why don’t you show me what you’d do?” she snarled. Water lapped her heels. The crew stared at her, eyes wide.

They charged.

She swatted them like flies; water came from all sides, throwing them from their deck. She watched them fly through the air and slam into the ocean below. Her lips curled into a grim smile.

The rest of the crew rushed onto the deck, and she purged it of them as well. Katara could hear the dismantled fuzz of a radio as a man called for help; she swung at him. The radio was knocked from his hand. Terrified, he turned to face her. He was a deer in headlights; his eyes were wideset, oozing terror. Hers were filled with fury, almost inhuman. They were the eyes of a woman with nothing to lose.

He ran for the side and leapt over of his own accord.

After the initial burst, her work was fast. Many crewmembers chose to face the ocean rather than her wrath, and those that did stay behind were hardly a match for her. Before long she was alone, wading in suddenly powerless water.

She shook away the despair that latched onto her chest and propelled them forward, away from the sailors. The ship buzzed, metal creaking. It was undoubtedly an upgrade from the canoe, but it still wasn’t meant for such high speeds.

Katara stopped after they’d travelled a sufficient distance, realizing for the first time just how lost she was. She moved from the deck and searched the ship for a map.

It wasn’t until she reached the captain’s room that she found anything of use. A small scroll mapping out the ship’s path sat on his desk, and a map of the world hung elegantly on his wall. She smashed its pretty frame and pulled out the second scroll.

She compared them carefully.

She was somewhere around... well, _here_ -ish, probably. Her finger lingered in the ocean between the Southern Water Tribe and the Earth Kingdom. The ship had been on its way back to the Fire Nation from the Southern Air Temple; her heart thumped and she wondered if they had met the same fate as her people. She repressed her worries. The Air Nomads weren’t a threat; it would be stupid for the Fire Nation to waste its resources on them.

Her fingers stepped from her approximate location to the closest land mass- a trail of islands near the coast of the Earth Kingdom. She stopped at the largest.

“Next stop, Kyoshi,” she muttered, throwing the map on the ground and heading back to the deck.


	4. Chapter Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, so this chapter is kind of short and filler-y, but you just have to bear with me. Just remember- Katara and Aang meet next chapter!

It was the next day by the time Aang woke up and even later before he could think of moving.

His bison lay silently with him for a while, but he had other plans and demonstrated them, nudging at Aang with his head. The young airbender turned into him, burying his face in his fur. Appa shoved him harder and rumbled.

“You’re right,” Aang murmured as he stood. He rubbed his arms, fighting against the pervasive cold. Appa nudged him forward.

His shoes stuck to the ground; the soles made small noises with every step. He found himself struggling to lift his feet

Evidently blood was sticky.

Aang’s stomach heaved and he stopped for a moment to clutch his chest. The blood was pooling around the Fire Nation helmet. It glistened in the light, a sight he'd never wanted to see. He fought the urge to break down again and stepped over the soldier’s legs, moving towards the end of the hallway he had come through

“Hello?” he called. His voice echoed through the tunnel, which forked in two directions. He glanced at both routes. They were both dark and dank, mold creeping over their stone walls. Aang shuddered and chose the left hall; he could see that it sloped upward and hoped it headed towards the main temple.

As he travelled, the smell of decay worsened, becoming almost overwhelming. Bloody footprints marked the soldier's movement through the tunnels. They had dried long ago and the rusty brown haunted him. Aang focused his gaze above them, but he couldn't help but notice when he stepped into something decidedly wet. 

He looked down. 

He's stepped right into a puddle of blood, deep red and almost identical to the one he'd seen circling the soldier's head. His step had disturbed the thick liquid; it had covered his foot and splattered up his leg. 

Appa nuzzled him softly as his eyes followed the wet trail.

Aang keeled over, arms wrapping around his middle. He heaved, letting the contents of his stomach splash to the ground. He puked until he had nothing left to lose, and then he puked some more. His blood fell to the ground and mixed with Gyatso's. 

_Gyatso._

The skin of his face had melted away, revealing stark white bones beneath. His mouth appeared to be curved into a grim smile, a mockery of the comforting grin that had brought Aang through all of his airbending frustrations. 

There was evidence of a skirmish, but no other bodies. Gyatso, Aang thought bitterly, had not abandoned his beliefs, even in such a dire time. 

He could've curled up and died there, could've let go of everything, if it weren't for the pressure of Appa's head against his back. The bison's presence grounded him; his soft groan reminded him that Gyatso wouldn't want him to give up just because he was gone. 

Aang stood up straight. His hand wrapped around his bison's fur, and he turned away from his teacher, from his favorite person in the world. Tears dripped from his chin. 

"Let's go, buddy."

**XXX**

It took a while for Aang’s hunger to catch up to him; his stomach rumbled as they flew over the ocean. He looked down at the map in his lap. His tears had dripped onto it, obscuring the words.

He squinted at it and trailed a finger from his approximate location to the nearest land mass.

“Well, bud,” he sniffed, wiping his eyes. “It seems we’re stopping on Kyoshi.”


	5. Chapter Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, this is by far my favorite chapter so far. It feels so good to have my babies do something other than cry by themselves. Add that to the Kataangy goodness, and this is definitely the least depressing thing that I've written for this story. Enjoy!

There were Fire Nation ships spread a mile wide around her destination. They seemed to be floating aimlessly, drifting in the space around Kyoshi with no desire to do anything but be present. 

They left a wide berth around the island; she could hardly see it from where her ship floated, just outside the ring of colleagues. 

Katara hated them, hated the steel contraptions housing soldiers and civilians, monsters every one. Still, she had to appreciate the convenience of her own disguise. The ships split for her as easily as the water did. 

She could hear men yelling from the side, but for what reason she had no idea. Her waterbending had slowed as to avoid hitting the other ships or the island. As much as she wanted to see them sink, it was more important for her to get onto allied shores. 

At least, she was pretty sure they'd be allied shores. The Fire Nation raid had thrown her entire world view into question.

Her ship was sailing through a no man’s land now. She had left the other Fire Nation ships behind her, but the island’s shores were not yet within reach. 

Suspicion nagged at the back of Katara’s mind. If she knew anything about the Fire Nation, it was that they were not an idle or cowardly people. If they weren’t going near Kyoshi, there had to be a reason.

It was at that moment that she felt her ship lurch to the left.

“Agh!” she shouted as she was thrown against the side. Her hands scrambled for purchase on the rail. She looked back over her shoulder.

A great serpent was rising from the water; its massive fangs glinted in its deadly maw. Yellow stripes bent and stretched along its sides. A colossal fin lay along its back.

Its great neck extended, and it slammed into the deck, laying waste to Katara’s ship. She screamed again. Her fear and frustration filled the air. 

The giant snake raised its head and turned to look at her. For one terrifying moment, Katara looked straight into its haunting green eyes. Then it lunged, and she launched herself off of her collapsing ship.

She pulled at the water, and it caught her. She lay submerged for a moment before she pushed at the ocean again. The water sent her flying forward.

The serpent roared and moved to follow her, but the wave carrying her crested onto the shore before it could reach her. She scrambled farther back on the beach. The monster stared at her. 

It roared before it turned away.

Katara took in a shaky breath and turned away from the water. She could see a small footpath in the entrance to the forest and headed towards it.

It wasn’t long before she ran into another person- quite literally, in fact. She slammed into the girl face first and, with a quick flip of her fan, was thrown to the ground.

“Who are you?” the stranger snarled.

The girl looked both beautiful and deadly; her perfect features were coated in thick makeup. The smooth white of her cheeks blended into a deep red around her eyes. The thick green silk of her dress accentuated her athletic build as much as it hid it.

Despite her startling attire, by far the most attention-grabbing aspect of the girl were her fans. The razor thin edges of the weapon were mere inches from Katara’s face; the sleek gold metal reflected light directly into her eyes.

She blinked away the dark spots in her eyes and sat up straighter. She would not be intimidated.

“Katara of the Water Tribe. I’ve come to seek refuge after the Fire Nation’s attack on my village.”

“On a Fire Nation ship?”

“I ran into it on the way here,” Katara replied. “I thought it would be a safer ride.”

The girl stared at her for another second before putting her fans down and offering a hand. She took it gratefully and stood up. 

“I’m Suki,” she murmured. “Leader of the Kyoshi Warriors. Follow me.”

She turned on her heel, and Katara followed after her. The warrior moved quickly through the familiar terrain. Katara, on the other hand, stumbled over roots and struggled to keep up. 

They move through the forest until the trees began to thin. As soon as the path was thick enough for two people, Katara ran up to Suki’s side.

“Can you tell me what’s going on? And what was that thing in the water?” She was quickly becoming frustrated; she was sopping wet, her pants were filled with small tears and twigs, and her hands had been scraped when she stopped herself from falling. 

“The Unagi,” Suki muttered, turning away from the faint silhouette of a village in the distance and towards a less used footpath. They were quickly approaching a small building. “A sea serpent. He was Avatar Kyoshi’s pet hundreds of years ago. She trained it to attack any foreigners attempting to hurt her people.”

Katara shuddered at the thought of keeping such a massive beast as a pet. Suki smiled at her as she pulled open the door of the small wood home.

“Of course, it was much smaller back then.”

The young waterbender entered the house and looked around. It was windowless, but light filtered in from the cracks between the wood panels and lay in shining lines across the floor. Hay was stacked in the corner, partnered with a thick blanket and a dusty pillow. A small table sat in the corner.

“This used to be where merchants would stay during their visits,” Suki said. “But it hasn’t gotten much use since Kyoshi Island closed itself off from the world a few years ago.”

Her voice was bitter; Katara couldn’t help but think that she hadn’t agreed with that decision.

“It’s nice.”

They stood in silence for a moment. Katara turned to wipe the dust off of the table, grimacing at the way her hand blackened. Suki reached out and touched her elbow.

“Listen,” she pleaded. Her eyes were desperate. “There’s a reason the Fire Nation is here today. We’re meeting with their ambassador; they want to use our island as a safe harbor for their trips along the southern coast. Kyoshi is neutral in this war at the moment, but we can’t afford to inflame them. Please, just... stay here, and be quiet.”

Katara nodded, and Suki turned towards the outside. She moved to leave but paused and looked over her shoulder. 

“I’m sorry about your home.”

“Thank you.”

She left her alone.

**XXX**

Naturally, it was only moments after Suki’s plea for subtlety when Aang crashed onto the scene.

Appa landed less than gracefully; the two had had quite the stressful few days, and the bison was exhausted. Aang, too tired and hungry to protest at the sight of the Fire Nation ships, was in no shape to lead him, and so they came barreling into the town square, nearly slamming into a wooden statue of a made-up woman. 

Aang looked up and around; villagers gaped at him. Exhausted, he raised a friendly hand.

“Does anyone have anything to eat?”

**XXX**

“I’m really sorry about that man’s cabbages,” Aang repeated. He was weighed down by food and did his best to shove some into his mouth between every breath.

“It’s fine,” Suki sighed.

“And that guy- uh, the foaming at the mouth guy? Tell him I’m sorry too. I didn’t mean to overexcite him.”

“Oh, him?” The warrior scoffed. “He gets that way when the baker starts selling a new type of bread. Don’t beat yourself up about it.”

“Oh, ok,” Aang breathed a sigh of relief. Appa, trailing behind him, roared.

“Oh, and Appa’s sorry too.”

“That’s great, kid.” Suki spun on her heel and looked Aang directly in the eyes. “Now here’s the thing- you’ve put me in a tough position. Every Fire Nation soldier from here to Omashu just saw a giant sky bison land on our Island, an island that has claimed not to harbor any wanted prisoners. Keeping you here could endanger our whole village’s safety. It could make this agreement fall through.”

Aang opened his mouth to ask what agreement she was talking about (and why she’d make an agreement with the Fire Nation of all places), but he thought better of it.

“Still, I won’t send you out to die. So you need to go in here,” She gestured to the hut that she had led him to. “and then you need to try your very best to be invisible. Understand?”

The young airbender nodded vigorously... and then stopped.

“What?” Suki snapped. She scolded herself internally; the kid was from the Southern Air Temple, the last thing he needed was her rage.

“What about Appa?”

She sighed and pointed to the area behind the hut. “There’s hay inside. It’s supposed to be used to sleep on, but I’m sure it’ll be fine to eat. Put it back there and let your bison rest. He shouldn’t be too noticeable.”

Aang nodded.

“Oh, and one more thing. There’s anoth-”

Suki paused to look behind her; a man clothed in blue stood there with his hands on his hips. He was scowling.

“Yeah?”

“Uh... nevermind.”

“Alrighty!” Aang replied, shoving more bread into his mouth. His stomach was devouring him from the inside out. Grief, hunger and stress were burning away his organs, but the rolls helped. Still, the fear and suppressed panic that was radiating from Kyoshi was becoming more and more familiar. He took a second between bites to say what was on his mind.

“Is there any way I can help you?” he asked. In his head, he was thinking something entirely different. He didn't want to be useless again.

“Yes,” Suki replied. “There is something you can do- you can go inside and hide. Ok?”

“Ok.”

Suki whizzed away before he had a chance to take her advice and enter the building. She rushed to the top of the hill and pulled the man away with her.

Aang shook away the memories their conversation had surfaced and reached for the door. The sooner he got Appa his hay, the sooner he could curl up against the bison’s side and finish his dinner. He would snuggle between the wall of the building and the great beast, hiding himself just as effectively as he would inside the hut, if not more so.

More importantly, he wouldn’t have to be alone.

He was still contemplating these plans when a voice snapped him out of his reverie.

“Suki?” a girl called, squinting at the sudden influx of light. Aang froze.

She sat in the corner of the hut, leaning against the pile of hay that was his target. Her thick brown hair was pulled back in a braid. He could see small pieces of hay glinting in it, little golden flecks that must’ve woven themselves in there when she sat. Her eyes, shining blue against her brown skin, were fixated on him.

The airbender gulped.

“Uh- Aang, actually,” he beamed, giving her the friendliest look he could muster as he flew to the table to set down his food. She gave him a suspicious look, and he offered her a hand. She took it and used it to pull herself up. “... Suki sent me.”

“Oh,” she said. “I’m Katara. She sent me too.”

“I think she’s trying to protect us,” Aang offered. “From the Fire Nation and stuff.”

“Probably, yeah.”

They were quiet. Aang dragged his shoe through the dirt. Katara crossed and uncrossed her arms.

“So-”  
“My bison-”

They both froze, blushing. Aang halted but quickly picked the conversation back up.

“I have to get some of this hay... for my bison, y’know.”

Katara nodded, moving away from the pile of hay. Aang moved next to her and gathered Appa’s lunch. He moved back towards the door. Katara followed him, and they walked outside. Appa’s stomach rumbled.

“So, you’re an airbender.”

“Yeah,” Aang said. He tossed the hay down in the corner, and Appa rushed forward to eat it.

There was another beat.

“I heard about... I’m sorry about what happened to your people.” She uncrossed her arms in order to touch his. He gave her a sad smile, tears welling at the corners of his eyes.

“It’s hard,” he admitted. “I don’t really know _what_ happened. I mean, I had _friends_ in the Fire Nation.”

Katara used the hand on his arm to drag him into a hug. 

He was shocked for a moment before he fell into her; her arms wrapped solidly around his neck. His hands looped around her waist. He turned his head so that it was buried in her hair. It smelled like salt water and sweat and _girl_ , and there was something strangely comforting in the way the strands felt against his tear-soaked face.

They stayed that way for a few moments, comforting each other, before Aang pulled away slightly. Focusing his gaze on Appa a few feet away, he spoke up.

“Well,” he laughed quietly, “I promise I’m not usually such a downer. So... what brings you to Kyoshi?”

He knew he’d said something wrong when he heard the choked sob.

**XXX**

As time passed, the sounds of the village changed.

Aang and Katara had moved inside the hut shortly after they finished their conversation, snivelling and half-smiling. They quickly moved past the initial awkwardness into friendly chatting, but there was something pressing down on them. They soon realized that it was silence.

The birds that had been chirping, the far-off laughter and shouts at the village- they’d all died out. Before long, the benders quieted as well, and the island stayed that way, silent and solemn. Katara shivered.

The quiet dragged on for what felt like forever. The two shot each other panicked glances and reached for each other’s hands under the table. 

Aang’s palms were sweaty. He’d always made friends easily, but there was something different about the way he reached for her for comfort, the way her fingernails dug into the skin of his knuckles. There was just something... permanent.

He sat, contemplating the silence and the way her brows furrowed ever-so-slightly until he was jerked out of his reverie by a sudden eruption of noise. He jumped in his seat, and Katara covered her mouth to halt her scream. They looked each other in the eye, tears welling. Terrified screeches echoed from the village- screeches, that is, and the roar of fire.

“What should we do?” Aang begged, reaching for his glider. Katara clutched her chest, fighting a wail. “We have to help!” 

He stood and attempted to pull her towards the door, but she didn’t budge.

“Wait!” she gasped. She regained her breath. “Suki told us to wait. Leaving will just hurt them more.” 

Aang opened his mouth to protest but stopped when he saw her face. Her eyes were rimmed by tears, but her lips were turned ever so slightly downward, her eyebrows curved. She was set.

“Ok,” he said. Even as he moved to sit down, someone slammed through the door. They both turned towards the doorway.

“Run,” Suki panted. A deep red burn spread up her arm; blood dripped onto her satin uniform.

“What?” Katara asked, rushing up to help her. The other girl waved her off, pressing a wad of bills into her hands instead.

“You have to leave,” she breathed. “Take Appa and go. Please.”

Katara stared at her for a moment, realization dawning. 

“Let’s go.”

Aang protested, but she pulled him along. He held his glider in the hand that she wasn't holding, and they followed Suki out of the building.

Appa was outside, roaring at a firebender who must’ve followed her. They dashed towards the bison as Suki turned towards the soldier. Aang jumped onto his back, and Katara climbed on after him.

“Yip yip!” Aang shouted. The bison lifted, and Katara wrapped her hands in the fur, screaming as they flew. A blast of flame whizzed past them.

Below them, Suki ran towards the soldier. He was focused on the air, but he turned to face his attacker. Her arms flexed; she brandished her fans. Her injury glowed neon bright against her pale skin.

They never saw her again.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I know, I know, I didn't post a chapter last week... I was busy! It's okay, we should be back on the schedule now. Let's do this!

After the original burst of energy, the flight was a quiet one. Katara clutched the side of the saddle with white knuckles; Aang kept his gaze focused on the horizon, steering them towards the Earth Kingdom’s mainland.

The sun drifted downwards as the hours stretched on, dimming as it went. Violet hues stretched across the horizon, but they faded as the sun sank beneath it. The moon rose higher.

It was morning again by the time they hit any substantial land masses, the sun rising lazily in the east. After hours of flying, acres of forest finally stretched out beneath them. Aang thought that he recognized the place as fairly near the city of Omashu; he’d heard many legends about the caves near there. The young airbender yawned and turned to his companion.

“Wanna stop?”

Katara shrugged. She’d relaxed since the beginning of the flight and now sat with her arms looped loosely around the saddle; she leaned onto them, equally tired.

“Sure.”

Aang guided Appa to the largest clearing he could see in the forest. Still, it was a tight fit, and the bison’s fur snagged on the branches. 

Katara and Aang crawled off as soon as they landed, and Appa turned away from them to shove at the trees. A few of the smaller ones gave way against his massive weight. He pushed away the remnants and curled up where they had been; his riders began to make their own place to sleep.

“Ugh,” Katara grimaced, looking down at her feet as they sunk into the thick mud. Aang made a face as he noticed the condition of his own boots.

“I think there’s a blanket in my pack,” he offered, gesturing to Appa. “We could lay it down and sit on it.”

Katara nodded and he went to retrieve it, wiggling between the trees and the bison’s back. He shoved at his friend, but Appa was already asleep and far too big for him to move. Aang struggled with his bag for a few more minutes before finally wrestling the blanket from it.

“Every airbender keeps an emergency bag in their saddle,” he explained, floating back down to her. “We always have to be ready for adventure.”

Katara nodded. She wore a strained smile that didn’t reach her eyes.

“I’d like to know where this one was leading us,” she murmured, rubbing her arms for warmth. He nodded slightly as he spread the blanket across the ground.

“Well,” he said, “I guess that depends.” Katara met his eyes. She pursed her lips and thought for a moment before replying.

“It seems to me that the Fire Nation has attacked homes like ours all over the world. I don’t think they want either of our people around anymore.”

Aang shook his head.

“They can’t have just wiped everyone of us out,” he insisted. “The airbenders are faster than the Fire Nation, at least some of them must’ve escaped- and the Northern Water Tribe is strong, right? Stronger than...”

His voice trailed off. Katara’s stomach churned at the near-mention of her people.

“The Southern Water Tribe was brave, and strong.” she muttered. “And no one’s immune. You saw the effort the Fire Nation was willing to go through to capture us. They aren’t leaving survivors this time.”

Aang looked down at his feet, near the blue blanket’s hem. His yellow shoes were covered in thick, goopy mud. He could see Katara’s feet on the other side of it. The breach was massive; the fabric was like an ocean between them, its turbulent waves splitting their sides. Realization dawned on him.

“What about the Earth Kingdom?” he said, slowly looking up. “The Fire Nation wasn’t going to attack Kyoshi, right? That means they aren’t trying to wipe them out!”

“Maybe,” Katara muttered, putting her hand on her chin. “But even then, how do we know if they’re taking in refugees? Especially when those are the consequences?”

“They must be!” Aang pushed, fighting against the all-encompassing dark. There was _always_ a bright side to these things. “They’ve never liked the Fire Nation- they’re probably doing it just to spite them!”

“Okay...” she agreed, still reluctant. “So let’s say they’re taking in refugees. Still, the Earth Kingdom’s a big place. Where do we go?”

“Ba Sing Se!” Aang cheered, pleased to find neutral ground. “The impenetrable city! It’s the safest place in the entire world!” 

Anxiety and doubt still crawled at Katara’s throat, but she swallowed it. 

“Fine.”

“Fine?” Aang beamed.

**XXX**

The two of them settled down on the blanket, careful to keep their dirty shoes off of the fabric. Aang made a face and looked at the ground around them.

“I don’t really think this is big enough,” he commented, carefully avoiding letting his hands fall into the dirt. “Not for both of us to stay clean.”

Katara examined the ground around them and clicked her tongue.

“We could sit like this,” she said, moving so her back was to Aang. He turned and sat the same way.

“Scootch closer,” Katara murmured. He gulped and slid backwards so their backs were pressed against each other.

“There,” she said. “Now we won’t fall.” 

She pushed back on him to demonstrate, and they both stayed steady.

“Cool!” Aang grinned. He leaned back, laughing. Her bony shoulder blade dug into his own.

“Yeah,” she said. “We used to do this on ice fishing trips sometimes in the South Pole. We’d sneak naps while we waited for a bite, and no one got dumped in the snow. This way we supported each other.”

There was a long pause. The silence was laced with meaning. Katara could feel the people she had left behind pressing down on her, their weight making her shoulders sink forward. Aang’s mind was filled with the future.

“Do we support each other now?” he asked. His voice was cautious. They had made their plan earlier with little regard to what would happen when they got to Ba Sing Se or if they would travel together. It had felt all right at the time, but the unanswered questions had been burning at him. He had lost too many important people not to wonder if she would be another.

Her fingers laced through his own, and her head lolled back on his shoulder. Her hair tickled his cheek.

“Yes,” she breathed. “I think we do.”

He squeezed her hand tightly.


End file.
